As of this writing we are exactly halfway through the Lenten season and I hope your obligation is a burden that is easy for you to bear. Whether you have given something up or have taken on a meaningful devotion, it is my sincere hope that you will arrive at Resurrection Day with a deeper understanding of Christ Jesus and his ultimate victory over sin and death.
Luke 4:9-11 states: "And he (the tempter) brought him to a pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem and said to him If you are the Son of God cast yourself down from here, for it is written: "He will give his angels charge over you to keep you; and in their hands they shall bear you up lest you dash your foot against a stone." Once again Satan pretends he does not know who Yeshua is by using the conjunction if. In using this Satan sets up a conditional clause. Prove you are God's son by taking steps to kill yourself and he uses scripture to provide the bait. Satan challenges Jesus to focus the attention on himself rather than focusing people's attention on the one who sent him. In every miracle Jesus performed he stated over and over again that it was done to reveal the glory of the most high. John 8:28 records what Jesus said to the Pharisees concerning his witness: "I do nothing of myself, but as my Father who has taught me, I speak these things." Jesus did not come to perform on command, he did not come to glorify himself and he did not come to associate only with the Jews of the temple. Jesus came to fulfill the scriptures concerning himself, glorify God the Father and pay the price for our sins with the only sacrifice the Father would accept to forgive all sins for all time.
Jesus rebukes Satan with: "It has also been said You shall not tempt the Lord your God." This being recorded in Luke 4:12. The next verse concludes these desert trials in this way: "And when the devil had ended every temptation, he left him for a time." This last is not insignificant as some scripture interprets this as until a more opportune time. This is the way Satan works, he tempts and if resisted he withdraws until a more opportune time is presented, or a different temptation is tried. That is why it is so difficult to resist temptation. Jesus taught us to test temptation by subjecting the situation to the glory examination. Will the situation give glory to God or give glory to self or worldly ways?
Our entire existence is to serve the good pleasure of our just, loving and merciful God and to reveal him to others. Let us cheerfully go about our ordinary duties and give the glory to Him always.
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